I stopped by the Sterling Heights Athletic Hub again today, two months after its grand opening, to check the atmosphere inside and see how the mural on the back side is progressing.
The mural, by local artist Wendy Popko, has the words “Greetings from Sterling Heights” in big block letters filled with references to local landmarks and traditions, like the sculpture outside the library, concerts at Sterlingfest and Dodge Park, the much-loved golden circle on Hall Road, etc. It’s still a work in progress and looks largely the same as it did a month ago. All the changes I see since then are on the right side:
- New green background paint behind H and T in “Heights.”
- Left side of final “H” is now painted.
- Woman in final “T” is now partially painted.
The mural was originally supposed to be finished on July 10, a day before the ribbon cutting. That timeline was probably a little tight; City Council only approved the $30,000 transaction for it on June 2, so Popko initially had a little over five weeks to paint it. It’s now been three months since the mural was approved, during which she also started work on new murals in other areas of Michigan entirely: in Flint, Lowell and Caro.
Inside, the building was getting some use: there were around 40 people playing games on a sunny Saturday afternoon — several courts of pickleball and three tables of ping pong. Three employees were manning the front desk and were happy to let me wander in and out.
I looked into a couple corners of the building I haven’t looked at before: the reflection room and the men’s locker room.
Everything looked in tip-top shape, and it felt pretty active in there, with more people coming in just as I was leaving. I started having an itch to play some ping pong, but as a non-resident of Sterling Heights it would have cost me $5, so I quit loitering and left.
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